Slumber
by Grey Gull Margarita
Summary: When Duke's sister returns, she brings with her surprising revelations regarding Audrey and the Troubles. But she also brings painful memories of the past for Duke and Nathan, once again straining their relationship. (Also, plenty of Naudrey and Dukifer to make you all smile.)
1. Getting the Call

**Chapter One: Getting the Call**

Duke never talked about her.

It wasn't because he didn't care. If anything, he cared _too _much. But he couldn't take the misguided pity. Whenever someone gave him that trademark of sympathy, it was like they were twisting a knife in his gut. So he kept busy – mostly with ill-advised schemes. He had once read that idle hands were the devil's playground. He wasn't sure about that but it sure did give you time to think – time to torture yourself with the same old thoughts.

Eventually, it became too much to take and he left Haven, a town so haunted by her memory. For a time, he was free. And then the Troubles came back. Reluctantly, but true to his word, Duke returned.

And now, here he was, several years later, and she was on his mind once again. He stood on the deck of his boat, looking out on the water, lost in what he had come to call "the dark thoughts." He clutched a cup of coffee that had once been steaming hot but was now tepid.

"Good Morning, Early Bird." Jennifer came on deck, wearing one of his shirts, her hair messy. She gave him a sleepy smile and moved to lean on the railing with him.

Duke put down his coffee and pulled Jennifer into his arms, entangling his fingers with hers. "Good Morning, Sleepy Head. Thought you were going to sleep all day."

"It's only eight in the morning. And you have been up since five. What's up?"

Duke shrugged. "Couldn't really sleep."

"I could tell. From all that tossing and turning you were doing."

He rested his chin on the top of her head. "I'm sorry I kept you up."

She turned and looked up at him with a mockingly stern look on her face. "I'm willing to forgive it. But is everything alright?"

Duke took one more look out at the water, the waves lapping against the side of his boat, before giving Jennifer what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "Nothing you need to worry about. How about breakfast? I make a mean omelette."

Jennifer's brow furrowed and he could tell that she wasn't sure whether to push him for more information or not.

"I'm telling you – these are the lightest, fluffiest omelets in all of Maine. Damn good coffee, too." He gave her a wink.

Finally, after a bit of consideration, Jennifer returned the smile. "I've had the swill you call coffee. I think it's best you stick to making omelets and margaritas. I'll take care of the morning's caffeine supply."

"Alright." He kissed her on the forehead and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Start the coffee. I'll be down in a second."

"Okay, don't take too long." She gave his hand a quick squeeze before heading below deck again.

Duke sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He loved Jennifer. He really did. And she knew more about him than most. She knew about his curse. She was even there when he was forced to kill his brother. So why had he withheld what was on his mind? Maybe because he wasn't yet willing to discuss the greatest failure of his life.

He started to head below deck when his cell phone rang in his pocket. He pulled it out, prepared to hit the ignore button. He stopped when he saw the caller ID.

Haven Medical Center.

Duke's pulse quickened and his breath caught. With trembling hands, he hit the answer button and held the phone to his ear. "This is Duke."

"Duke Crocker? We have you listed as an emergency contact for a Veronica Riedel."

He felt his chest tighten. He had been waiting for this day for almost twenty years. "That would be me, yes."

And then, she said something that surprised him. "Sir, Veronica is awake."

He walked below deck to find Jennifer pouring creamer into a steaming cup of coffee. "Okay, so I know you normally prefer Bailey's in your coffee but I found this new creamer at the store the other day. It's called salted caramel mocha and it's to die f-," She stopped when she saw the look on his face. "Duke, what's wrong?"

He looked at the phone still in his hands and then back up at Jennifer, at a loss for words at first.

She looked up at him, her eyes full of worry. "Duke?"

"It's…My sister. She's been in a coma. She just woke up this morning."


	2. We Need to Talk About Veronica

_**Okay, so I noticed some typos and formatting errors on that last chapter once it was already up. I will try to do better this time! Sorry if this chapter seems a bit rushed. It was. I realize there is some stuff that's somewhat non-canon in here. Just roll with it. It's fan fic and I did my best. Please read and review! :)**_

**Chapter Two: We Need to Talk About Veronica**

A heavy silence hung between Duke and Jennifer as she tried desperately to process this new information. Duke silently cursed himself for not breaking the news a little gentler. "Jennifer, you still with me?"

She shook her head, brow furrowed in confusion. "I- I don't understand. You have a sister? You've mentioned some brothers but I remember you saying that you didn't have a sister."

Duke knew this was coming. He turned around, scrubbing at his face with the palm of his hand. "It's complicated, Jen."

Jennifer lifted an eyebrow. "Complicated. You either have a sister or you don't, Duke." She sighed and shook her head. "Oh, god. I probably sound like a total bitch. I'm sorry. I'm just…confused. Why didn't you ever tell me about her? Why did you lie about her?"

Duke sighed. He walked over to the shelf and pulled down a bottle of whiskey. He poured himself a small glass and took a sip. "I don't exactly like talking about her."

"Why?"

He paused. "Something happened. She and this guy. Her…boyfriend." He took another swig before continuing. "They were somewhere they weren't supposed to be. And they got hurt. He ended up being okay in the end but Veronica slipped into a coma and remained that way until this morning."

He could tell Jennifer was struggling to grapple with all this new information. "How long ago was this?"

Duke let out a long breath, pinching the bridge of nose. He could feel a headache coming on. It had been a long time since he had talked about her. "She was fifteen. I was seventeen. It wasn't long after that when I left Haven. Most of the money from my…endeavors goes towards paying for her treatment."

"She's been in a coma for _twenty years_? How has she even been alive this long?"

Duke gave her a sad smile before taking a swig of his whiskey. "This is Haven, darling. I've learned, over the years, to stop asking questions."

Jennifer nodded and set down the coffee she had been holding. "Okay. Well, let's get over there, then. You need to see your sister. I'll get dressed and drive you over there."

"I can drive myself. Don't worry about it." He was already reaching for his keys.

"Duke." She grabbed his arm and looked up at him with those blue eyes that always gave him pause. "Let me be here for you, okay?"

Duke said nothing but enveloped Jennifer in an embrace, kissing the top of her head affectionately. After a few seconds, Jennifer broke away and wandered into the bedroom to get dressed.

* * *

"You ready for this?" Jennifer had pulled the car into a parking spot outside and stopped the car. She clutched the keys in her hand and looked at Duke, clearly worried. She bit her lip nervously.

Duke stared straight ahead, taking in the building. He was ashamed to admit it had been a while since he had last been here to visit his sister. The Troubles had kept him pretty busy. Still, she was his sister. How could he let that slide? "Yeah, I got this," he finally answered.

Jennifer reached over and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Would you like me to go in with you or is this something you'd rather do on your own?"

He thought about it for a moment, rubbing his thumb over hers. Finally, he kissed her hand and gave her a small smile. "I'd rather face this with you, for sure."

They got out of the car and made their way to the doors of the building when they heard a familiar voice.

"Duke?"

Duke's hand tightened around Jennifer's. He turned to face Nathan Wuornos, Audrey Parker a few steps behind him. "Nathan. What are you doing here?"

Nathan nodded towards the hospital. "The station got a call about a disturbance. One of the patients got violent with a nurse. What are you doing here?"

Duke's jaw clenched. "Just here to see a friend." He ignored Jennifer's look and continued to walk through the hospital doors, dodging the confused looks of Nathan and Audrey.

A nurse at the front desk stood up as everyone entered. "Oh thank God you're here. We can't control her."

A scream came from down the hall. A scream that Duke recognized. "Ronnie?" He turned on the nurse. "What the hell is going on?"

The nurse was taken aback. "Mr. Crocker? Nothing. She was peaceful at first and then she saw our nurse, Bev. She became incredibly agitated and began swinging punches at anyone who comes within arm's reach of her."

Nathan grabbed Duke's arm. "Veronica? She's awake?"

Duke shrugged out of Nathan's grip and walked through the hallway, following the screams. He heard the others right behind him. Finally, he reached the room and burst in. Veronica was sitting up in bed, her long black hair a snarled mess, her eyes full of terror and confusion. She was clawing at an orderly that was trying desperately to stick her with a syringe.

"Ronnie!"

Veronica looked at him, recognition on her face. "Duke. These are troubled times. The spider's on the clock and it's counting down. They're everywhere. It's time. Time time time."

The orderly cursed as the needle was knocked for his hands and hit the floor. He shook his head. "She's been saying shit like that since she woke up. But every time, she gets more and more freaked out. Can't make heads or tails of it."

Audrey entered the room. "Can you think of anything in particular that set her off?"

One look at Audrey and Veronica was screaming again. She picked up the tray of untouched food by her bed and flung it in their direction. "Wicked girl. Bringing hell down on our heads. Save save save. You save but you destroyed." Suddenly, she went completely still. "The times of trouble are all your doing."


End file.
